Department of Chemistry Seminar - Life of a Molecule: From Chemical Reactivity to Bedside

Speaker: Professor Valery V. FOKIN

Institution: Professor and Director of Agilent Center of Excellence in Biomolecular Characterization, University of Southern California

Hosted By: Professor Guochen JIA

Abstract

Our research program has taken us from attempts to understand fundamental chemical reactivity to applying the insights we gained to biomedical research.

Our ability to construct new molecular architectures with desired properties depends on the efficient methods for controlled and selective formation of new chemical bonds in complex environments. Chemical transformations that reliably introduce and transform various functional groups are required for the synthesis of materials ranging from small molecule therapeutics to macromolecular multifunctional biomedical imaging and drug delivery systems. Catalytic reactions offer unprecedented potential for achieving these goals. Our studies of new reactivity, the insights into the mechanism and catalyst behavior, and the resulting applications to drug discovery, cellular and tissue imaging, and targeted therapeutics will be highlighted in the presentation.